Doc, well from what I read in original post I get the impression that he is in this situation for many years (at least five or more) and that he can't change anything by just trying to walk. The only thing that has changed isn't something about his body, but the new walker.I'm not a doctor (nor I want to be) and I don't know how hard it is in his position, I just mentioned electricity because I don't think that he can hear much about it, and it might help him, because he is moving for 15 minutes per day.

_________________Don’t run if you can walk, don’t walk if you can stand, don’t stand if you can sit,and if you sat, might as well lie down and take a nap.

Thanks guys. Honestly I'm trying to work hard, and figure out what I need to work hard at. Even though the walker isn't an answer all I think the benefits of using it consistantly are priceless. Just the short walk down the hall daily is priceless to me. But so far I'm thinking I need to work abs / back. I will try to post more this weekend if I get time. Thank you again, I greatly appreciate the support.

Been tryin to keep steady. But feeling a little discouraged lately. I have seen progress in situps, going from 15 to 24 total, I will keep pushing, I'm hoping when I'm able to do 100 that I will be able to situp without help. I feel discouraged because I haven't figured out exactly what I need to do yet. I think the abs and back are key to alot of other things so I will keep at that. But I worry that being reliant on a wheelchair I've become too 1 dimensional, for example I walk straight ahead because that works, I sit up (straight forward) I exercise my legs straight out, but doing this limits my ability and goals because it neglects other important functions. Don't get me wrong, I don't want to spend an hour on something that will make a minute difference but I do want to work on things that might seem minor but add great function to my life/abilities. Anyway, I appreciate the support.

Feel free to post anything you'd like. We'll help if we can. I like Jungledoc's idea of unilateral.

I understand what you're getting at. You don't want to just recover the ability to stand and walk, but be otherwise the same as you were when you couldn't move your legs. You want to regain the ability to move all the different ways people do as they go about their daily lives. You have the right idea, the abs and lower back are definitely the key to this. Doing different movement patterns should help with that. Each thing will just be one exercise, but since the pattern is used in many activities, you can improve in all activities which are based on that movement pattern.

Maybe stationary bikes if you have access to any. You can try both upright and recumbent. You'll be able to peddle both forwards and backwards. Or maybe you can try stepping up/down. Say you have two stable surfaces, one a little higher than the other, and you have them positioned by something you can grab onto to hold yourself up.

You can try taking some steps backwards, doing side steps, and getting up from lying on your stomach, or being on your hands and knees. If you usually exercise your legs by lifting them out in front of you, maybe try lying prone on a bed with your legs hanging off the edge and then lifting them up as close to straight as you can. You can make it easier or harder with the amount of your lower body that is hanging off the bed.

Picking things up from the floor and putting things on the floor is another thing you can try. You can start with a low shelf if the floor is too hard. I think that probably covers all the different movements. I think focusing on moving over targeting a muscle might be just what you need.

I don't know what deadbug variations are but will look it up. I don't know if I can recover walking "normal" and that doesn't bother me. Abs and back are necessary yes. But today I saw that I need to go for it with my legs, all out. Balance and not toppoling over is sweet, but I need to strengthen and rehab my legs (more than 1 direction) so when I am on them they work and benefit me as much as they possibly can. And then arms are needed. I don't even know how to say it clearly but I need to try to focus on the big picture, but also maybe individual parts as well.

Like, doing the pullups is good for my back, but I need help getting my left hand / arm up to the bar. So if I focused and figured out how to stretch/strengthen my left arm/shoulder it would open up to other oppurtunities to improve. Yet I need to not put all my time into one arm.

Being in a wheelchair I've realized that the arm muscles that pull things in and toward me are most fit because that's been my natural route of doing what I can for myself. But the opposite movements that require going out are much less able, so I hope to get those going.

Sitting on the edge of the bed with my feet on the ground and doing situps has shown much improvement. Up to 4 sets of 8. With abs, how oft should I take a day off if at all? Because I hate to skip a day when i'm doing so well. And lying in bed with my legs straight out I can not sit up. Is it possible that my feet on the ground situps will carry over to lying flat situps?

Eventually I will get some photos and video for feedback.

Next week I will be moving and without internet so I will probably keep my journal in a text file until i can post it.

You can work abs more often than large muscle groups, but don't be afraid to take days off. Remember, muscles grow during recovery, not during exercise!

You can read up on hip flexors on the main ExRx site. It's complicated, since they cross both the hips (where they function as flexors) and the knees (where they function as extensors). When the knees are bent, that puts the hips at an advantage. When the knees are straight, the quads are "looser", or effectively lengthened. That means that more shortening of the muscles are required to achieve the same amount of hip flexion as when the knees are flexed. Does that make sense? It's one of those "I know what I mean so you should too" kind of things. Yes, sit-ups with knees bent will help you on toward being able to sit up with the knees straight, and will help the other stabilizers (abs) you need to sit up. As you get stronger, keep trying to do your sit-ups with the knees slightly less flexed. Also, try to focus on doing them with your hips, not your abs. Keep your lumbar spine nice and straight while doing them.

_________________Our greatest fear should not be of failure, but of succeeding at things in life that don't really matter.--Francis Chan

I thought abs were large muscle groups? Should I always focus on doing my situps with my hips or just sometimes? Here is a picture of me http://www.flickr.com/photos/abacoian/9340297292/ I posted this first to show how I spend the majority of my time, in a wheelchair. Based on this photo, I need suggestions for a strap that can go around my ankle or shoe with a loop or ring, and then my thought is to attach a rope or band, hook that to an eyering on the wall, slowly move my chair backwards and stretch out my tight leg. Does this seem like an effective idea? I also just thought, if I did it with a strong resistance band I might be able to exercise my legs like I normally wouldn't. I think the main thing iis finding the right kind of ankle strap that will work. Suggestions/ideas appreciated

Situps mostly help just to pull your pelvis closer to your ribs, which you don't need. Your abs need to be strong to stabilize the lumbar spine, not to move it. So yes, work on your hip flexors.

I'm not sure I'm clear on your plan for stretching your leg, but the general idea seems sound. Can you have a friend or family member stretch your leg? If so, include the ankle. Resistance bands could be good. How about just loop the band around your ankle?

_________________Our greatest fear should not be of failure, but of succeeding at things in life that don't really matter.--Francis Chan

Since I might be offline for a while might you post some article links that I could download and read? i'm thinking back, abs (hipflexors) legs, and shoulders and anything else that you think might be of benefit. Thank you

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